Strawberry Delight!

She plucked one out, unwrapped it and popped it in her mouth. ‘Command! Play Poldark on catch-up, please.’ As she chewed she stared up at the to-die-for face of Ross Poldark. Aidan Turner! Sweet Lord! Why can’t my husband look like you?

‘Here we are, my sexy beast!’

She took the glass without even looking at Maurice. ‘That’s what I call a sexy beast,’ she said, pointing at the screen.

He sat down next to her with his glass and cuddled up to her. ‘You used to call me your sexy beast.’ He nuzzled her ear and she shook him away, dipping her hand into the tub and pulling out another Strawberry Delight. ‘Did I? I don’t remember that.’

He looked hurt.

Then froze.

He could smell cigar smoke. Faint at first but getting rapidly stronger.

A shadow moved across the doorway.

‘What the…?’ he said, but Claudette was engrossed in the television and didn’t hear him.

He got to his feet and walked, cautiously, over to the door and looked out into the hall. Nothing there. He sniffed. But the smell had gone – as quickly as it had come.

36

Sunday 16 December

Jason and Emily stood, rooted to the spot, staring around the room. The command module here in the studio was set in the ceiling above his desk. But this voice hadn’t come from above – it had come from behind them, through the open door.

‘What was that?’ she said. ‘What was it?’

He strode over and looked down the stairs. ‘Yes, hello!’ he yelled down. ‘Something you want to share with us? Hello? HELLO?’

‘Don’t,’ Emily cautioned.

He turned to her. ‘Don’t what? Someone speaks to me in my – our – home, I’m sodding well answering them back.’ He shouted down the stairs. ‘Show yourself – you can say what you want, my wife and I aren’t scared of a bloody ghost, OK? Got that?’

Emily followed him and stood beside him. Their eyes met, Emily’s wide with fear. Jason put a protective arm around her and held her tight again. He could feel her trembling.

He was trembling, too.

‘What was it?’ she asked. ‘Like, who?’

‘Stay here, I’ll take a look.’

‘No way, I’m coming with you.’

She followed him, one slow step at a time, down the spiral staircase. Into each of the rooms in turn, on the first floor. Checking the windows. All were locked. Then on down and into the hall. There was nothing in the living room and they went into the kitchen. Poldark was on the television, the sound still muted.

‘We both heard it, Jason,’ Emily said.

‘I know.’ He went through into the utility room off the kitchen, grabbed the torch from the shelf and went out of the back door, latching it. Emily followed.

He headed past the bin store, to the back garden, and shone the beam all around. ‘I’m going to check the front too – make sure there are no speakers anywhere, put there by that bastard Fears, or any other locals trying to scare us,’ he said, determinedly.